


The Citadel: Rattling Bones

by Lunersun



Series: The Citadel of Lost Souls [3]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Also bad sans, Bad brother dynamic, Danger Papyrus, French Toast, Lovesick, No they didn’t make french toast that’s my name, Other, The Citadel, because they ain’t bros, just fakin it, sometimes at least
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-23
Updated: 2018-10-09
Packaged: 2019-06-15 02:07:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 6,878
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15402606
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lunersun/pseuds/Lunersun
Summary: A story of what the higgidy heck is up with Bones- a Tale..? Papyrus that ended up in the void, in a place called the citadel! Hope you have fun reading ;3cBones was inspired by FINAGLC’s story- although the events ended up playing out a little differently for my Papyrus than they did in the original!





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Flowey Is Not a Good Life Coach](https://archiveofourown.org/works/5056333) by [unrestedjade](https://archiveofourown.org/users/unrestedjade/pseuds/unrestedjade). 



> This is the beginning, but don’t worry~! There’s plenty more to happen in the future >w<

_“What did you do! You ruined it! I was supposed to take the souls, not have you BREAK THEM!”_

_Flowey reared up before his ‘pal,’ clearly upset. As much as he could be, at least. Stupid skeleton- how DARE he break the Souls like that?! All this work was for NOTHING- but he had his own problem._

_“NYEH HEH HEH HEH HEH! OH FLOWEY, DID YOU REALLY THINK I WOULDN’T FIGURE OUT YOUR PLAN? THAT I WOULDN’T MAKE A PLAN OF MY OWN? AND YOU THOUGHT I WAS A FOOL!”_

_Flowey seethed, absolutely livid that he had been tricked like this, cheated out of the human souls. There wasn’t going to be an ending where this worked out for him anymore, not while Papyrus was so much stronger than him. He wished he could wipe that smug look off of Papyrus’ face… oh wait! He could!_

_Flowey reset the timeline completely, and everything went back to the way it should have been. At least… that’s what they all thought. That’s what should have happened._

_But something in the code had broken. Something was different, and no one quite knew what it was. No one, except for Papyrus himself..._

——————————————————

Papyrus- or, Bones, rather, was already awake and cooking breakfast when he heard his “brother” come down the stairs. The food may not have been great in the citadel, but this version of Sans still expected him to try his best. He was ‘The Great Papyrus’ after all! He loved cooking, even if he wasn’t very good at it yet! He always did everything just like normal, and lived just like how Sans wanted him to, the perfect little brother!

Bones had to wonder yet again how he endured such a mind-numbing routine like this, after all he had been through. Did they really expect him to have clung to his old ways? Even if his little accident hadn’t happened, he still wouldn’t be the same Papyrus.

“sup, bro?” Sans, as he had Bones call him whenever they were alone, had popped up in the kitchen behind him, and even without looking Bones knew he had a relaxed smile on his face.

“HELLO SANS! YOU’RE UP ALL ON YOUR OWN- I’M IMPRESSED! YOU’VE REALLY OUTDONE YOURSELF THIS TIME!”

“heh, yeah, guess I am. Thanks, bro.” Sans lingered for a few seconds longer, before teleporting away from Bones and most likely to the table. Good, flattery had worked well enough, and he’d chosen the right words too. He was pretty sure that he was on his last straw with this Sans, and they might do something drastic if he stepped out of line. You’d think Tale Sanses would be the safest choices, considering they were lazy and loved Tale Papyri almost unconditionally, but they got… possessive. Most of them had been through some sort of hell, and wanted everything to be like how it had been before they had ended up in the citadel.

Bones wasn’t really interested in his own timeline. He didn’t miss it, not right now at least, when there was nothing for him there. Here, he could be with a Sans, pretend to be their brother for a while, as long as they would have him for. So far no one had kept him as a brother for more than a few weeks, but hey, it meant that he was able to live fairly comfortably, riding off of the money that the Sans had doing whatever he wanted, as long as it was in character.

“ARE YOU READY FOR… MYSTERY NOT-SPAGHETTI?” Bones rounded the corner holding two plates of food, with various random ingredients thrown together into what could roughly be called a meal. Apparently, not cooking well was just as important as smiling, even though it was a bit of a silly thing to actually want. Sans could burn his food just fine himself if he wanted, and wasn’t so determined to stick to his old habits…

Once they had both finished breakfast, and he was already starting on washing the dishes, he heard his Sans’ voice call out from behind, saying, “Alright Paps, I’m goin’ out to work, I’ll see you when I get back.”

“TRY NOT TO FALL ASLEEP!” Bones glanced back at the door, watching Sans leave, finally alone. He dropped the smile he had been wearing up until now, finishing his cleaning in silence- then, once everything was done, he pulled out his phone, and scrolled down a bit in his options.

Ah, there it was. He had gotten a phone for himself with an extra option on it, one besides the standard video, jetpack, and what have you. It was a CHECK feature, and it let him run checks on other monsters, able to see important details like ATK, DEF, LOVE…

More importantly, it meant he could keep tabs on his own LOVE. Make sure that he was aware of how high it was at any point in time. Right now, he seemed to be just a few points away from 14, which meant he’d have to start keeping a closer eye on… other factors. Make sure he didn’t tip off his Sans about his condition, for sure, but sooner or later he’d be having a bit more business in the Sin District than he thought…

Oh, right! He was likely needed there now, actually. Looked like someone had contacted him a little while ago with a job offer, probably just a simple delivery again. Better get going, especially now that Sans was gone.


	2. Beginning of the Middle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some Business to take care of elsewhere...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know these are kinda short but! Bear with me, this is both one of my first times and I’m also trying to pace myself a bit. Ya gotta have the build up before you have the action and pay off after all! This is basically like... setting the story. Y’all are gonna start learning more about the setting as time goes on, don’t worry if you have questions!

_ “Papyrus? ‘s something wrong?” _

 

_ “NO! OF COURSE NOT, I’M FINE- GREAT, REALLY! DON’T WORRY ABOUT A THING!” _

 

_ Papyrus smiled his best for Sans, who eventually turned and walked away with a slight shrug. Papyrus waited until he was out of sight, and then even a little longer before he finally let out the breath he had been holding, closing his eyes and gripping his knees with both hands.  _

 

_ Why was he remembering things like this? Why was the feeling of dust so vivid, like his gloves were filled to the brim? Worse, why… why could he so vividly see his friends falling apart in front of him, his sins crawling on his back- what sins?? He- he hadn’t DONE anything, had he? _

 

_...had he..? _

 

_...what did he  _ **_do_ ** _ during that last timeline? _

 

——————————————————

 

_ Click.  _ The door locked quietly behind him, and Bones began walking steadily down the hallway. Right now he lived in an apartment, one that his Sans was renting for the both of them. Considering he wasn’t the sort of Papyrus that made his hosts pay for his presence, he was more than happy to let his current Sans pay the bills for him, in exchange for his company. 

 

Luckily for Bones, this apartment was fairly close to the Sin District. Probably because this sans wasn’t exactly getting payed much in his job, and they needed someplace cheap to stay. The closer you got to sin, the more dangerous it was, although that also meant his sans fussed over him, trying to make sure he stayed safe and unhurt by the “unfriendly” people who lived in the Sin District. Because despite being perfectly capable, a papyrus had to be protected, of course.

 

Bones drew the gaze of a few scattered monsters on the streets as he walked by, but no one stopped him on his way. He was actually able to get all the way to the Sin District without getting stopped, walking with a confidence that came from knowing his way around this area, and one that could be used as an excuse for “getting lost and wandering into” the most crime-ridden section of the city. There, he got a lot more looks thrown his way, and Bones made sure he kept a careful eye out around him. Of course, keeping an eye out didn’t stop shady people from walking up to you anyways, in this case, another papyrus, one with an almost silky voice and clothes to match.

 

“What’s a Vanilla Bean like you doin’ walking around here? Looking for someone, maybe? Or, are you just lost?”

 

They had moved closer than Bones had been expected, nearly touching him and forcing him to resist the urge to shove them away, magically or otherwise. “LOOKING FOR SOMEONE! I THINK THEY’RE CALLED… DORSAL, YOU WOULDN’T HAPPEN TO KNOW HIM, WOULD YOU?”

 

Ah, that had made the other stop, shifting slightly away from Bones with a fair amount of suspicion. Apparently, they hadn’t been expecting that name from him, and were suddenly a bit more interested in their own hands than they had been before. “No, I don’t know him. If I did, though, I’m sure I’d tell you where he is, for a small fee…”

 

“THAT’S FINE! I KNOW WHERE I’M GOING, SO YOU CAN LEAVE ME ALONE. GOODBYE!”

 

Bones began walking off, leaving the other papyrus standing there looking dumbfounded, apparently surprised by the rude statement he had given them in reply. It seemed like they might follow him, for a moment, but apparently they decided against it, huffing slightly and turning away from him entirely. Good, with the way Dorsal was, he wanted to get there sooner rather than later. Luckily, walking with a purpose was a great way to avoid people here, helping to give you a vibe of power that made people leave you alone, usually. Things still happen, of course, but they happen much less.

 

A few more turns through the sprawling maze of district architecture, and he had walked into an alley that was hidden away from view fairly well. Within it were two monsters- a burgerpants and an Undyne, both of which had turned to him as they saw his approach. The burgerpants spoke first though, puffing up slightly with a growl to his voice, “Hey, scram, we ain’t lookin’ for help.”

 

“ACTUALLY, I THINK YOU ARE, BUT I’M NOT WORKING FOR FREE. YOU DID CONTACT ME FOR A DELIVERY, CORRECT?”

 

“ _ You? _ You’re-“

 

“Quiet, Felt.” The Undyne turned to look at bones, glancing over him before nodding, gesturing towards Felt with one hand, apparently to get them started on opening a box currently shoved against the wall. “Nice to see you again Bones, don’t mind the new guy. This one’s another package for Pointer, same place as before, void edge of the district. Make sure not to leave it in your inventory too long, it’s… an odd one.”

 

“IF YOU KEEP SENDING ME ALL THE WAY OUT VOIDSIDE I’M GOING TO HAVE TO START CHARGING YOU MORE, YOU KNOW. IT’S DANGEROUS OUT THERE, AND I’VE GOT A CARING BROTHER WHO LOVES ME  _ SO MUCH… _ ” 

 

He was being more sarcastic on that last part, even putting a hand to his forehead dramatically, and the undyne rolled her eyes. “Yeah, you’re full of shit Bones. Knowing you, you’ll have a different Sans as your adoptive brother by the end of the week, or at least, you’ll have left Comical behind.”

 

“IT IS STILL DANGEROUS THOUGH. I’M ALREADY LETTING YOU PAY LESS THAN MY SERVICE IS REALLY WORTH, AND WE BOTH KNOW IT.”

 

Felt had finished unpacking the item from the box, although it was wrapped in brown paper at the moment, and handed it to Bones with a sneer. Once he had the package, however, Felt backed off, and the Undyne spoke again.

 

“We’ll think about it, Bones. For now, just get this done, Pointer doesn’t like waiting when they need something.”

 

“OF COURSE, HAVE A  _ FANTASTIC _ DAY.” Bone’s tone didn’t quite match their words, and his smile ended up being not quite as friendly as it probably should have been, but neither one of the monsters seemed to notice- or care. He turned around and started walking quickly away, making sure to keep a careful eye out around him at the same time. Hmm, he would have to stick to the back alleyways for this one, since apparently he couldn’t just hold it in his phone inventory the whole trip, that could be a problem. You were less likely to encounter someone in an alley, but the people you  _ did _ encounter were never good news. Best case scenario, he wouldn’t see another soul until he was done.


	3. Getting Pointers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bones delivers a package and talks to a friend!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooner or later my chapter titles are just going to become garbage like “oh, you know” or “JELLO BONES” or something else equally silly that has NOTHING to do with the story. You have been warned.

_ Papyrus looked out at the clearing, trying to sort out his thoughts. This was the place where he often met his good friend flowey, but… it felt so dark. So dangerous, like something terrible had happened here. Terrible to him? Terrible to his friends? It was impossible to tell. _

 

_ He hadn’t seen Flowey in days. Flowey usually showed up so much- where had he gone off to? Papyrus had so many questions for him, and Flowey usually had so many answers, and this wasn’t something he could tell someone else! Not even Sans, even though keeping a secret from his brother was hard, he couldn’t know. He was already worried enough, without having another person’s nightmares to stack on top of his own. _

 

_ Papyrus must have been there for hours, waiting, but the flower never came, And his thoughts never left. _

 

——————————————————

 

Today, at least, it seemed quiet. The two monsters he did see had run away after spotting him, likely who’d had a bad run in with a papyrus before and weren’t looking for another one. Not all Papyrus were nice, after all.

 

Pointer’s house was on the edge of the citadel, and from the outside it looked a bit like a misshapen pile of scrap metal. Various pieces of steel stuck out at odd angles, and it honestly looked like removing one piece would make the whole thing collapse, even if that wasn’t the case. Beyond it, you could see the wide, black expanse of the void, a sight that still unnerved Bones, even after having been here for… too long, he decided.

 

Right now, however, he had a job to do. He knocked firmly on the door, waiting for a few seconds before hearing a voice from the other side, asking, “Who’s out there- if I don’t like what I see then you’re dead!”

 

Of course, Bones just waited patiently, and the door swung open to reveal a Fell Alphys with some sort of gun pointed towards him, already charging up. Once she saw who it was though, she sighed, pointing the gun skywards and letting it fire off a laser away from the both of them. “Great, you must be here with my delivery. Come inside before someone skewers us both.”

 

Bones didn’t hesitate, following Pointer inside, although slightly awkwardly since he was a fair bit taller than she was, and the house wasn’t really built to accommodate his size. He made sure the door was shut firmly behind him before handing the package to Pointer, who quickly snatched it away and scampered off to one of her workbenches with it, tearing the paper off and leaving it on the ground, just adding to the mess that was already there.

 

“ohohoho, perfect. I didn’t think they’d be able to get ahold of one of these for me… Come here, come here!” 

 

Pointer was waving for them to come over, despite having already started pulling out tools and a large magnifying glass to start working on… whatever she had gotten. As he made his way over, he was able to see what it was- a collar, one that would normally be put on a monster to inhibit it’s magical abilities. “ISN’T THIS JUST ONE OF THE COLLARS THEY USE IN THE HOSPITAL AND THE ARENA?”

 

“No! Well, not quite. This is a particular model- a 5g collar, one that happens to be very useful as a power booster. If you’re able to properly alter it, of course.” Pointer was grinning, carefully flipping the collar over on her workbench, looking the whole thing over while she spoke.

 

“See, this model inhibited magic by rerouting it back to the user, so when they tried to use magic all the energy just looped right back at them. It was a good idea but it didn’t always work, and while it kept a monster from losing too much magic it didn’t always work so well to keep other monsters from dusting them. However…” 

 

She popped a small panel off, revealing a mess of electrical and magical parts that Bones couldn’t possibly have deciphered on his own, much less properly altered. “If you move some things around and add a magnifier, you can make it echo back your magic much stronger than it would normally be. It’s an easy modification to make, really, although most people neglect to actually fix it so it doesn’t become too dangerous to be worth using. How many times has some idiot exploded because the magic echoing back was way more than they or the collar could handle…”

 

Pointer shook her head for a moment, before continuing to work on the collar with steady hands. After a few moments, however, she turned to Bones with a wide grin, saying, “How would you like to test it out when I’m done, dusty? I know you’d use it well.”

 

“AH, NO THANK YOU! I THINK SOMEONE ELSE SHOULD HAVE THE… HONOR, OF TESTING IT BEFORE ME. DON’T CALL ME DUSTY.” 

 

Bones had winced at the nickname, reminded of the fact that Pointer was one of the few monsters that actually knew what he was like. It hadn’t taken them long to find out once they had noticed how much his LV fluctuated, both up and down over time, and luckily Pointer wasn’t someone Bones wanted to take on at any point in time. Of course, she just laughed, turning back to keep working on her collar. “Of course, I’d hate for you to lose your head~! You’re one of my best little helpers, after all. How much longer until your ready for one of  _ MY _ jobs, do you think?”

 

Bones thought for a moment, considering their question. One of “her jobs” usually meant something that would give him some EXP, so he tended to take them later in his cycle. “ABOUT A WEEK OR SO WILL PROBABLY BE THE BEST TIME. I SHOULD BE A BIT MORE INCLINED TOWARDS A FIGHT AT THAT POINT!”

 

“a week huh? Sooner than you said last time I saw you!”

 

“YOU KNOW I’M NOT ALWAYS VERY GOOD AT PREDICTING MY STATE, EVEN JUST DAY TO DAY. SOMETIMES THINGS HAPPEN, AFTER ALL!”

 

“Yes, things happen… who knows, maybe they’ll happen a lot sooner than you think.” Pointer was back to working on the collar again, and Bones took that as his signal to leave. At least once he was out of their house he could stand up straight again… and start on his way back home. 

 

Pointer’s words followed him though, worrying enough to set him a bit on edge. ‘maybe they’ll happen a lot sooner than you think…’ Did she know something he didn’t?


	4. Who’s Wish was Fulfilled?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some shady business a’happenin’- a battle is surely brewing!

_ “...NOW’S YOUR CHANCE TO ACCEPT MY  _ **_MERCY!_ ** _ ” _

 

_ Papyrus was breathing heavily, smiling down at the young human in front of him. Their appearance had distracted him from his thoughts, mostly, sorta, which was great! They were also turning out to be an amazing friend, which was great! It would give Papyrus a lot of something to do! _

 

_ Of course, the human continued on their way, forwards past them towards Waterfall. No doubt they’d talk to his brother, they’d probably get something to eat, and… _

 

_ He whipped around, gasping sharply. What was that, just now. There had been a feeling, like… like a knife, but made of ice, and inside his soul. It made his bones rattle, and his skeleton heart race- but there was no one there. It was just the snow and him, and the river and some trees and… and nothing else. _

 

_ Papyrus shook his head, taking a deep breath, in, out. He was fine. He… he had a report to give! To Undyne! Yes, that was the very stupendously, incredibly… Stupendibly important thing he had to do right now! He couldn’t worry about the fact that everything felt like it had become just slightly off in the world! It was probably nothing! Nothing The Great Papyrus couldn’t handle at least!  _

 

——————————————————

 

Bones continued forward, watching the area around him and trying to stick to the open areas more. This close to the void there wouldn’t be any reasonably busy streets, but he could at least avoid going places where someone could catch him alone. Being a papyrus had its perks sometimes, especially if it meant someone might protect you from an attack if they saw it happening. Unlikely, sure, but possible.

 

Unfortunately, it looked like someone had started tailing him. He couldn’t pin down when, or even why, but he certainly wasn’t going to let them continue on behind him until they decided it was time to attack. He’d just greet them head on instead.

 

“THERE’S NO NEED TO FOLLOW ME AROUND, YOU CAN JUST COME AND SAY HELLO! I PROMISE I DON’T BITE.”

 

It took a few moments, but the monster following him did step out into the open- an Underswap Sans, by the looks of it, complete with a bright blue bandana and an even brighter smile. “I DIDN’T THINK YOU’D SEE ME! YOU’RE GOOD, AREN’T YA?”

 

Bones didn’t take their eyes off of them, but smiled, standing firmly where they were, quietly preparing a magic attack just in case… “I DIDN’T THINK I’D HAVE SOMEONE FOLLOWING ME! YOU ARE JUST HERE TO SAY HELLO, RIGHT?”

 

Bones’ question had been a warning more than anything- that if the smaller skeleton WAS here for some other reason, they ought to say it now and that he would be ready for whatever happened. The swap sans just kept their smile steady though, chuckling slightly. “WHAT ELSE WOULD I BE DOING HERE? A NICE SANS LIKE ME, A FRIENDLY PAPYRUS LIKE YOU… AND MY FRIENDS!”

 

Suddenly, it felt like a weight had been put on his shoulders, dragging him down towards the ground. Ah, blue magic- and the feeling in the air that told him someone else was about to attack him. He pushed himself off to the side, just fast enough to avoid the majority of the bones that had been sent his way. Back to standing as fast as he could, and then trying to figure out who it had been. 

 

An organized attack, then- there was a Fell sans, the one who had attacked first Bones assumed, and surprisingly, a toriel he didn’t recognize. Three against one was hardly fair, but there wasn’t much he could do about it- he just had to figure out which one to take out first.

 

“YOU KNOW, IT’S NOT VERY POLITE TO ATTACK SOMEONE YOU JUST MET! ESPECIALLY IF YOU’RE GOING TO FAIL YOUR FIRST ATTACK!” Bones decided to go for the fell sans first. They were the most dangerous target here, at the moment, although the other two had yet to attack so it was hard to be sure…

 

Either way, Bones sent his own attack towards the fell sans, and predictably, they teleported out of the way. Considering the fact that he didn’t reappear in Bone’s line of sight, the fell sans had likely teleported behind him- so he turned around, forming a large bone attack in his hands and swinging it where he guessed the sans would be- which, surprisingly, worked. The Fell sans was knocked to the side, hands up to their skull in pain. Bones turned back towards the other two, and had to dodge a sudden blast of fire that had been sent his way by the toriel.

 

“NYEH HEH HEH! THIS ISN’T MY FIRST FIGHT, YOU KNOW- I’LL LET YOU GO NOW IF YOU LEAVE ME ALONE!”

 

“SORRY, BUT IT’S PERSONAL NOW!HOPE YOU UNDERSTAND!” The swap sans had formed a huge magic hammer, holding it so it was leaned on one shoulder and could be easily swung downwards towards the ground. The Toriel’s hands were swirling with fire as well, and Bones knew better than to assume that fell sans was out of the battle.

 

Well. Not with that blow, at least.

 

Bones smiled towards the two of them, reaching out one hand as he prepared another wave of bones… before flicking his hand to the side, and throwing the bones down towards the fell sans instead. Attacking someone while they were down was a bit of a dirty move, sure, but it’s not like any of them were really playing fair to begin with. He was just getting rid of another potential danger now instead of later.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m going to be gone for this next week which is why these two updates were up early! Enjoy, and have fun waiting owo


	5. Another one bites the dust

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Completion of a battle, and the start of the first end..?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> APOLOGIES FOR THE WAIT ON THIS CHAPTER! I had gotten held up a bit longer than I had expected, but I should be getting back into the flow now! I hope you enjoy~!

_ Undyne was standing there, waiting in the place they had agreed on for Papyrus’ report. This was right, just like normal… well, except for the fact that for once, Papyrus had seen a human, and the human was his friend, and there was also something going on with him that he wasn’t really sure about.  _

 

_ “HELLO UNDYNE! I’M HERE WITH MY REPORT! ABOUT THAT HUMAN I CALLED YOU ABOUT EARLIER! I…” _

 

_ “did you capture them?” _

 

_ Papyrus paused, considering the question. No, they hadn’t, but… they didn’t want their new friend to get captured either! “NO, I DIDN’T CATCH THEM, BUT ABOUT THAT! I DON’T THINK WE SHOULD CAPTURE THEM, FOR, YOU SEE..!” _

 

_ Undyne turned towards him and he froze, his breath catching suddenly. They had their magic attacks summoned, a blue glow casting them in shadow, all except for their eyes. Dust was floating past, but he could feel it thickest on himself, and the pressure of vines on his ribs. No- No, this wasn’t-  _

 

_ Papyrus took several steps back, closing his eyes in anticipation for the attack. It… it never came, and instead he heard Undyne’s voice. “Papyrus? Hey- what’s wrong?” _

 

_ Papyrus cracked his eyes open, and… there was nothing there. Undyne looked quite concerned though, and a whole lot less murdery than he had thought. The feeling of dust still seemed to linger on his bones though, and he couldn’t shake it off. “NOTHING! SORRY I COULDN’T CATCH THE HUMAN! BYE!” _

 

_ Then, he turned around and left, not even glancing back at the extremely confused Undyne he left behind. _

 

_ —————————————————— _

 

The Fell Sans convulsed, before collapsing into a pile of dust. Unfortunately, Bones didn’t get a moment to rest, as the other two monsters immediately retaliated with their own combined attack. He wasn’t able to dodge or block all of it, and he could feel some of the fabric on his left arm burn away from a stream of fire that hit him. This needed to end quickly.

 

Bones sent a wave of bones towards the both of them, sliding against the ground- easy enough to dodge, he knew. The two monsters jumped the wave easily, ready to fire off their own magic attacks, when Bones finished the rest of his attack- turning both their souls blue, and pushing them back towards the wave of bones that had been brought up higher from the ground. The Swap Sans wasn’t fooled for long, flipping up off the ground and landing on the wall of a building behind them. The Toriel, unfortunately, was not as nimble, and slammed into the bone attacks, growling towards him through the pain.

 

Bones felt his own soul turn blue, and he was sent backwards against a building on his own side of the street. Behind him he could feel the slight crackle of magic being formed, and ahead of him, a swirl of magic fire that was coming straight for him, so he boosted himself up into the air with his own bone attacks, moving himself out of range of the fire and the bones that seemed to burst from the wall behind him. From there, he could see the both of them again, standing firmly next to each other and glaring up at him.

 

“YOU CAN STILL RUN YOU KNOW! I PROBABLY WOULDN’T BE ABLE TO CATCH THE BOTH OF YOU!”

 

“Do not talk down to us! You have been using cheap tricks to get the better of us!”

 

“OH? SORRY! I THOUGHT THIS BATTLE WAS  **ANYTHING GOES!** ” Bones turned his own soul Blue, along with the Swap Sans across from him, pushing them both the same direction- himself forwards, and the Sans forced firmly into place on the wall, so that he would fall right towards them. Another large bone, like the one he had hit the Fell Sans with, formed in his hands, along with a wall of fire between himself and the Swap Sans. He couldn’t see them, but he could tell his magic was still acting on them, holding them in place… and it was really too late to stop, at this point. He flew headlong through the flames, gritting his teeth as a large chunk of HP was lost to the magic attack. 

 

It was worth it, though, when he clashed with the Sans, his attack hitting them even through their own bone defenses. Not the best damage he’d ever dealt, but, with a sans you usually only needed a few hits. He pushed back off of the other skeleton, trying to put a little bit of distance between them, before feeling a pulse of blue magic from the Swap Sans that sent him to the ground. He only had enough time to put up his own shield of bones before their attack struck, along with a circle of flames that seemed to close in on him.

 

His HP had been cut down greatly by now, nearly in half. He knew he couldn’t fight the both of them for much longer, but… he decided that getting rid of the Sans would be his first priority- they were the one who was most likely to be able to catch up to him if he did have to run. So, he focused his magic, carefully dodging the next attack that came his way.

 

“SO, WHY DID YOU ATTACK ME AGAIN? YOU WEREN’T JUST LOOKING FOR A RANDOM TARGET, I ASSUME.”

 

“OH NO! SOMEONE ASKED US TO ATTACK YOU, ALTHOUGH WE DIDN’T THINK YOU’D BE SO STRONG!” The Swap Sans smiled back at Bones as they summoned a cartoonishly large hammer in their hands, preparing to charge the taller skeleton based on their stance. Good, that would give him the opportunity he needed…

 

A tunnel of fire surrounded the two skeletons, giving them both a clear line of fire to each other- which the swap sans used to rocket forward, preparing to smash the hammer he held into Bones. Then… the sans disappeared. A glance behind him was enough to show that they hadn’t teleported there, but then where was..? 

 

_ Wait. _ Bones summoned a bone attack above himself, just barely fast enough to block the hammer that had come through the fire down at him. Judging by the damage it did to the conjured bones, if he had been hit directly by that, he would have been a goner… But now, he had taken his opponent by surprise, and he could land his own powerful attack instead, skewering them with bones that made their dust float right down onto him. They just had to make a mess all over his battle body, did they? What a hassle.

 

After a moment the flames disappeared, and Bones turned to look at the only opponent he had left. A Toriel, one who was quite shocked to see that he was left standing after that attack, now covered in a light coat of dust. They seemed so… scared now, seeing not one, but two people die in front of them, possibly even friends…

 

Bones had to laugh. It was just too great. “SORRY, I THINK YOU MAY HAVE UNDERESTIMATED ME? WELL, AT LEAST I WAS ABLE TO GET SOME GOOD EXP FROM IT!”

 

He turned their soul blue, pushing them against the wall of a building behind them. A long, pointed bone was summoned in his hand, his other hand still focusing the blue magic on them. They were trying to get away but the force of the magic was more than they could move out of, apparently, and they couldn’t focus well enough on their magic to make a proper attack. Two walls of bones moved up around the toriel, and they flinched, closing their eyes and turning away from Bones.

 

“w-Wait! I’ll leave you alone- just let me go, you won’t have to worry about us again!”

 

“I WON’T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT YOU AGAIN EITHER WAY WILL I? BESIDES, I DON’T LIKE WHEN PEOPLE KNOW MY LITTLE SECRET.” 

 

Bones drove the attack through the toriel’s chest, and they gasped, grabbing futilely at it with their hands like they wanted to pull it out. The walls of bones to either side of them closed in, finishing up the damage he needed to kill them- ah, it had left a bit of a mess that way, and now he had both blood AND dust on him. The mess in the streets wasn’t necessarily an issue at least, nothing out of place in the Sin District, but he couldn’t go home looking like this.

 

After glancing around for a moment, he saw a fairly sturdy looking building with a flat roof a few meters away. That would work, especially if he didn’t want to talk to anyone else in person at the moment. With a hop, skip, and a magically boosted jump, he was up on the roof in no time, and looking into his phone’s inventory for a change of clothes. Before he could actually reach his clothes, however, his phone started to ring. At least someone was calling him now instead of trying to during that battle…

 

“HELLO? THIS IS THE GREAT BONES SPEAKING! WHO IS THIS?”

 

“So, Bones, my good, no, my great friend- I had a hunch that you might be feeling a bit better about now. How soon did you say you thought you might be ready?”

 

It was Pointer, then. He should have known, anyone who actually wanted to put a hit on him would have chosen more powerful, experienced monsters- or at least, they would have given them more information. “THOSE WERE YOUR FRIENDS, I ASSUME?”

 

“My friends, your friends, strangers, that’s not really what’s important is it? will you be ready to take on a job soon?”

 

“NYEH HEH HEH HEH HEH, WELL, I’M MORE FOR IT THAN I WAS BEFORE. WHEN WOULD YOU LIKE ME TO COME OUT AND MEET WHOEVER IT IS YOU’RE THINKING OF?”

 

“How about tomorrow? As long as your sans isn’t going to be an issue, of course.” 

 

“HE SHOULDN’T BE A PROBLEM. ALTHOUGH, I DO NEED TO GET GOING, OR HE’S GOING TO BECOME AN ISSUE, UNFORTUNATELY.”

 

“Yeah yeah, alright. Call me when you’re ready.” Then, with a click, the call was over, and Bones was able to get his clothes and change. He put his previous outfit into his inventory, and then scrolled through his phone’s options until he found the one he wanted. CHECK.

 

17 LOVE. Those three monsters had provided him with a pretty impressive boost to his LV then, which was both a good and a bad thing. Bad because it meant he had to be even more careful around anyone he suspected could check him out, but good because he could already feel how much his power had increased. Even after that battle, he could feel it, the draw to find more monsters, to increase his LV even more… but he would have to wait.

 

After all, he had to get home, and be the good brother his Sans expected him to be.


	6. Aha, whoops

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A bad time? A bad time. Coming soon to a fanfic near you!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Even after saying I'd update it still took a while, whoops. In any case, enjoy these free words owo.

_ He needed to get this sorted. Like, really sorted out, because it was starting to scare him a bit. Surely it wasn’t anything he COULDN’T take care of on his own- he was THE Great Papyrus, he was just… dreaming?? Was he falling asleep more and he didn't realize it? But then would the fix be MORE sleep or LESS sleep? _

 

_ Gah, this was too confusing, they couldn't just do it alone, and they didn't want to worry Sans. Undyne was busy with the human, and he didn't really- _

 

_ “THE HUMAN!” That’s right, he had to… Hmm. Well, this was a new problem. He was supposed to help Undyne, but the human was his friend! He couldn't just betray them! Maybe he could work with them to help Undyne, so everyone was helped in the end! Besides, the human was a rather smart cookie, they’d be smart enough to know what to do. _

 

_ Papyrus marched into his home, and straight into his room where he, of course, promptly pulled out his phone. Alright, he would call the human and…  _

 

_ and… the human’s phone number was… _

 

_ Hmm. That was a problem. _

 

_ He’d just have to dial every number sequentially until he got theirs! _

 

\-------------------

 

Bones made his way quickly through the Sin District, avoiding or ignoring the attention of any other monsters he happened to see along the way. No one stopped him, and whether it was because of the purpose in his stride or the empty expression he had, he couldn’t say for sure. Once your LOVE was this high, a friendly look could get a bit tricky to pull off. 

 

Once he had started getting closer to the border between the Sin District and his own home, he started to actively avoid getting seen by anyone else. He knew there was no chance he was dust free after that fight, and the last thing he needed was unnecessary witnesses- well, unnecessary victims, really. He couldn’t let his secret spread farther than a small circle of… business partners, who could appreciate his skills in full. Besides, his sans would throw a fit if he thought Bones was trying to do something on his own, without supervision, that wasn’t included in his narrow vision of what a papyrus was supposed to be like.

 

Brothers really were such a hassle.

 

Once he had gotten inside the relative safety of his own house, he started preparing his dirty clothes to be run, shaking some of the excess dust off his clothes into the shower, and pulling a special cleaner out of his inventory that had to be applied before throwing the clothes in the wash, but would completely remove dust if you used it right. Monster dust was one of those things that would stain anything it touched, if you didn’t take care of it right away. He had learned that one a long time ago.

 

Once all his clothes, even the clothes he had switched into beforehand, were in the wash, he got himself into the shower as well, both washing any dust left over down the drain and… well. Getting clean. As you do. He should have some time to spare before Sans got home, enough for his battle body to make it’s way completely through the wash at least, since getting jumped like that had gotten it dirty and he didn’t really have another at the moment…

 

“Heya- Paps, I’m home.”

 

Bones froze, trying to figure out how he wanted to do this. He had to put  _ something _ on, but it would be impossible to wait for his outfit to finish  _ and _ somehow sneak past Sans to the laundry, retrieve his clothes and then put it on. What should he wear- he didn’t have anyone over so it couldn’t be his ‘dating outfit,’ although…

 

“WELCOME HOME SANS! JUST A MOMENT!” He dried off a little bit, and then threw on the jogboy outfit Sans had gotten for him- there, now he could at least pretend like he had been working out, and draw less attention to his lack of battlebody than he would wearing anything else. He threw open the door to the main room, taking heavy breaths as if he needed to breath at the moment.

 

“YOU CAUGHT ME IN THE MIDDLE OF TRAINING! IN MY ROOM! I THOUGHT YOU NEEDED TO… HAVE YOUR JOB HAPPENING LONGER BEFORE IT FINISHED. YOU’RE NOT SLACKING OFF ARE YOU?? BECAUSE YOU KNOW I WON’T TOLERATE IT!!”

 

“why’d it take you so long to get out here then?”

 

“I- WHAT DO YOU MEAN SANS?”

 

The two skeletons had their eyes locked, both of their smiles more forced than they should have been. Sans chuckled hollowly, shaking his head slowly for a moment before speaking again. “...Nothing. Just go put on your battle body again, I told you not to take it off, remember?”

 

“AHA. YES, I ABSOLUTELY CAN JUST PUT IT ON AGAIN WITHOUT ANY PROBLEMS, THANK YOU SANS. NOW YOU CAN GO BACK OUT AND DO SOME IMPORTANT THINGS RIGHT?”

 

“Papyrus… I think I can spare some time to make sure you're ok. Why don't you just go get it?”

 

_ Shoot.  _ Sans had clearly caught on that something here didn't add up- and Bones probably couldn't stall him for an hour. He could try, at least, but… well, he’d just have to hope this didn't escalate into something.

 

Oh. Hm. His Sans had suddenly jerked backwards, a look of shock crossing his face that was quickly replaced with hostility, and then a feeling of blue magic that washed over Bones and pushed him against the wall farthest from Sans.

 

_ “what did you do to him. _ ”

 

...Looks like this was where it escalated into something.


End file.
